Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Week Three: Gathering Materials

I really thought this week was
going to be less interesting than the last two just because I planned to mostly
acquire materials needed to work on the major portion of this project, which is
the map. However, as the week progressed I was pleasantly surprised with the
turn of events.

This past week I was able to have
the Loyola University Digital Media Lab print out two maps for the project. I
took one to an off campus business and had it laminated so that I could proceed
with drawing on the map itself. It still shocks me to see the amount of detail
that was put into this map by De Smet, and without the help of modern
cartography technology. Also, I was able to successfully order a very
interesting map of the Pacific Northwest. This particular map is detailed with
areas where certain Native tribes lived and naturally considered their
territory, as well as where the fur trading posts were located that were essential
in helping De Smet’s missionary work become successful. Also, I was able to
find four books, De Smet’s letters Vol. II, III, and IV as well as a biography,
all from the early twentieth century at our library here on campus. I was
overjoyed to find a pullout map in the 1915 biography of his life. On this map
it shows the routes he took to set up the missions in the Pacific Northwest.
This is an amazing find because it will help me detail the larger map.

I spent the other portion of this
week trying to pin down a general time frame of the Virgin Mary sighting by the
Flathead Indians. The professor I am working with on this project was kind
enough to get me access to the digital edition of the first volume of De Smet’s
letters, which I could not get from the library, and here I found the
information I needed. “Accordingly on Christmas Eve, (1841) a few hours before
midnight mass, the Village of St. Mary was deemed worthy of a special mark of
heaven’s favor. The Blessed Virgin appeared to a little orphan boy named Paul,
in the hut of an aged and truly pious woman.” This was exactly the passage I
needed to find! Now I can email the archivist of the Jesuits in Rome with a
date and see if I can find any additional information, and add this to the map as
well. Another truly thrilling week comes to an end.